Words in italic type have been added for clarity. They are not found in the original Hebrew or Aramaic.

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Matthew 5

The Beatitudes

Matthew 5:¹ And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him.

Matthew 5:² Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:

Matthew 5:³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 5:⁴ Blessed are those who mourn,
For they shall be comforted.

Matthew 5:⁵ Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth (land).

• Meekness is not weakness. Meekness is power under control.
• A man is never so weak as when he is angry.
• Meekness is the opposite of violence.

Matthew 5:⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
For they shall be filled.

Matthew 5:⁷ Blessed are the merciful,
For they shall obtain mercy.

Matthew 5:⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart,
For they shall see God.

Matthew 5:⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God.

Matthew 5:¹⁰ Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 5:¹¹ Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.

Matthew 5:¹² Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Believers Are Salt and Light

Matthew 5:¹³ “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.

• Lot’s wife.

Matthew 5:¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.

Matthew 5:¹⁵ Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

Matthew 5:¹⁶ Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

• The Light is the Love. Love is the producer of good works.

Christ Fulfills the Law

Matthew 5:¹⁷ “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.

• Why would they believe He wanted to destroy the Law or the Prophets?
  • Should we then keep the law?
  • Or should we exceed the law by loving God with all our heart, mind and soul and love others as we love ourselves?

Matthew 5:¹⁸ For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.

• What is a Jot? [Gr. iota, Heb. yod, the smallest letter]
• What is a tittle? [The smallest stroke in a Heb. letter]

Matthew 5:¹⁹ Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

• When you love someone with Jesus’ perfect love there is no way you can hurt them. You can’t rob them, cheat them, murder them, or give them diseases.
• Not only does Jesus want men to follow His commandments but he wants them to exceed it, not by the law – but by love. The commandments are a duty. Love is a gift. There is no love without sacrificing one’s money, time, property, or time.
• The New Covenant is: The law of love combined with a baptism resulting in one’s death to self, after which men are given gifts to serve both God and man. The greatest in the kingdom of heaven are those who sacrifice themselves in order to serve others.
  
  • Matthew 20:22
    But Jesus answered and said, “You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They said to Him, “We are able.”
    
  • Luke 12:50
    But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished!
    
  • Matthew 20:28
    just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
    
  • Luke 22:26
    But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves.

Matthew 5:²⁰ For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

• The Pharisees used God’s laws to make themselves “gods”.
• Their “righteousness” was their own egos which gave them the power to lord over others while exempting themselves.
• They promoted the law, but ignored the love.
• See Topic: Law and Grace

Jesus Begins By Explaining the Law of the Heart, the New Covenant which exceeds the demands of the Old Covenant. Perfect Love exceeds the Law. Commitment is different when Love is added. Read On …

Murder Begins in the Heart

Matthew 5:²¹ “You have heard that it was said (to pour forth, to utter, to command) to those of old (in ancient times), ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’

• Exodus 20:13
  “You shall not murder.

Matthew 5:²² But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ (empty-headed) shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ‘You fool! (Moron)’ shall be in danger of hell (Gehenna) fire.

• Therefore; you are murdering your brother’s dignity and soul.

Matthew 5:²³ Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,

Matthew 5:²⁴ leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Matthew 5:²⁵ Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer; and you be thrown into prison.

Matthew 5:²⁶ Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny.

Adultery in the Heart

Matthew 5:²⁷ “You have heard that it was said to those of old; ‘You shall not commit adultery.’

Matthew 5:²⁸ But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

• Exodus 20:14
  “You shall not commit adultery.

1. People tend to change partners because they do not want to change themselves.
2. You cannot love one woman while you are lusting after another. This is not the way of God.

• See Pop Up “Lust, Pride, Dishonor

Matthew 5:²⁹ If your right eye causes you to sin (stumble, offend), pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.

• Note: Eve first saw the forbidden fruit before she was tempted to eat it. David “saw” Bathsheba bathing before he committed both adultery and murder. Samson “saw” Delilah before he was blinded.

Matthew 5:³⁰ And if your right hand causes you to sin (Literally stumble, or offend), cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.

Marriage Is Sacred and Binding

Matthew 5:³¹ “Furthermore it has been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’

• Matthew 19:⁸ He said to them, “Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so”

Matthew 5:³² But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality (fornication) causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.

• Not all marriages can stay together because of issues such as physical and mental abuse. However, we tend to find another person just like the person we just left. Therefore, it is better to separate, not marry, and work on fixing our own issues and attractions.

• Sexual immorality however, is different, not only for the reasons listed about, but because of sexually transmitted diseases.

Jesus Forbids Oaths

Matthew 5:³³ “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old (ancient times), ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.’

• Hosea 10:4
  They have spoken words, Swearing falsely in making a covenant. Thus judgment springs up like hemlock in the furrows of the field.

Matthew 5:³⁴ But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne;

Matthew 5:³⁵ nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.

Matthew 5:³⁶ Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black.

Matthew 5:³⁷ But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.

Go the Second Mile

Matthew 5:³⁸ “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’

• Exodus 21:24
  eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,
• Leviticus 24:20
  fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; as he has caused disfigurement of a man, so shall it be done to him.
• Deuteronomy 19:21
  Your eye shall not pity: life shall be for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

“What was said” is the Old Covenant. “But I say” is the New Covenant.

Matthew 5:³⁹ But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.

• They slapped Jesus when He was arrested and taken to His Inquisition.

Matthew 5:⁴⁰ If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also.

• They took Jesus’ tunic and cloak when He was crucified.

Matthew 5:⁴¹ And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.

• Simon of Cyrene walked 1/2 mile as he carried Jesus’ cross. We also must take up Jesus’ cross to walk the extra mile.
  • Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.

Matthew 5:⁴² Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.

Love Your Enemies

Matthew 5:⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’

Matthew 5:⁴⁴ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you (But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

Matthew 5:⁴⁵ that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

• See Jesus as Rain (He comes down to us like the Rain Psalm 72:6, Hosea 6:3, Joel 2:23). Rain literally means “teacher”. The righteous/faithful Rain is the Messiah.

“He makes His SON rise on the evil and on the good, and sends the Messiah on the just and the unjust.”

Matthew 5:⁴⁶ For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?

Matthew 5:⁴⁷ And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors (Gentiles) do so?

Matthew 5:⁴⁸ Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.

What a beautiful prophetic statement. We are made perfect in Jesus. Our sinful bodies are here on earth, but our spirits are already in heaven with Jesus.

Ephesians 2:⁵ even when we were dead in trespasses, (He) made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), ⁶ and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

The minute we give our lives to Jesus, we are seated in the heavens with Him.

In physics, this concept is called “entanglement”. Science has been able to “entangle” two particles, seven hundred and fifty miles apart, so that each move in tandem, having become as “one”.